


Forgiveness

by 18lzytwner



Series: LazyTown Third Series [3]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-06-30
Updated: 2011-06-30
Packaged: 2019-06-29 10:44:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 19,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15727794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/18lzytwner/pseuds/18lzytwner
Summary: Robbie's release from jail threatens to pull at the carefully sown fabric of our group of friends. Can they get past it or does Robbie have other ideas?Again the age difference is not substantial





	1. Chapter 1

Pixel paced back and forth in the waiting room, looking at the floor and every once in a while looking at the door where the patients exited.  He refused to sit still despite the fact the nurse at the check in desk had begged him to.  He was worrying other patients and their families in the room.  The Gizmo Guy had obliged for a little while but now he was back at it.  Someone must have put in a phone call because Sportacus waltzed into the room and gave the nurse a wink.

          “I do believe the nice lady at the desk asked you to sit,” he smirked.  Pixel turned and gave the hero a weak smile.

          “I guess I’m just anxious,” his friend replied and quickly found a seat.

          “What could be taking so long?”  He asked as Sportacus sat down next to him.  The above average hero bounced the ball of his foot on the floor and Pixel soon took it up.

          “They have to run the blood test.  You weren’t as nervous when she was getting cleared to get out of her wheelchair,” Sportacus said.

          “That was a little different, we could be…” he stopped as Amanda exited the door, a down look on her face.  From the exterior, no one would have known that three short years ago she’d been confined to a wheelchair for a period of six months or that her lungs didn’t work as well as everyone else’s.  She hid it well but there were times she couldn’t.  Pixel admired her strength and the fact that despite her scars she wore a wedding dress that didn’t hide them.  They’d been married for almost two years now and life was great.

          “What is it baby?”  He asked very concerned that something had gone wrong.

          “I guess we’ll have to get a bigger place,” she smirked.

          “You mean…”

          “That’s right.  You’re going to be a daddy,” this time she could not help but smile.  He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a quick kiss.  Everyone in the waiting room was smiling, glad to see the poor man relieved of his misery and that there was good news to be had.

          “I say this calls for a celebration!”  Sportacus was beaming.

          “We’ll go tell my folks and she’ll make a phone call and we’ll be over at the Mayor’s house soon,” Pixel smiled.

          “Excellent!”  With that the above average hero rushed out the door and headed for Milford’s.

          It didn’t take long to get there and he knocked on the door.  Bessie opened it, happy to see him.

          “Well?”  She asked, assuming that he’d been the first to know.  After all he and Stingy had been the best men at the wedding.  That and she had a friend at the doctor’s office who told her the hero had arrived at the request of the nurse.

          “They’re going to have a baby!”  He said.

          “That’s exciting!  I’ll call Milford.  He ran back to the office for a meeting with Chief Dooright,” Bessie explained.  She went for the phone and Sportacus heaved a sigh.  The good news was tempered a little by the realization that Robbie would soon be getting out.  He still had to tell Stephanie and he hated to do it and ruin their friends’ good news.  Things had been rough for all of them after the incident and he thought they’d finally gotten to the point where they could put it all behind them but now with this, he wasn’t so sure.  He raced out the door and headed for her apartment.


	2. Chapter 2

“That’s great!”  Stephanie exclaimed at the news Sportacus had delivered.  She gave him a quick hug and said,

          “I have to change!”  She was wearing a pink t-shirt that had a hole in it and some faded denim shorts that had once been pants, edges frayed where they’d been cut.  She had the day off from her job as a receptionist at Doctor Smith’s office and her bumming around the house clothes wouldn’t exactly fit for a party.  The hero smiled, as he so often did, and watched her run down to her bedroom and shut the door.  He walked to the window in her front room and stared out it looking to see if the weather would hold.

          His thoughts wandered and eventually they found their way to the place they had been three years ago.  Stephanie, after learning of her father’s decision had not even hesitated.  She called her home and the two of them went at it over the wire.  They argued and bickered and said things they both didn’t mean.  In the end, Stephanie had delivered an ultimatum to her father telling him if he wanted her home, he’d have to come and get her, otherwise she was staying put with the man she loved and the Uncle she adored.  He hung up on her and for a long time afterwards, Stephanie cried.  She loved her dad; she just didn’t understand his behavior.  Weeks went by before her mother called her, begging her to at least come home and talk to him.  It didn’t have to be for long, just so that they could talk like adults.  Stephanie had agreed provided that Sportacus would be allowed into their home.  Her mother laughed at that, telling her that she couldn’t ask for a better man to be by her side and it wasn’t the fact that she was dating the hero that was the problem.

          “Ready!”  Stephanie called out as she reentered the living room.  Sportacus turned around; his thoughts vanished as he took in the outfit that she wore.  A cute pink polo shirt she had on was just the right fit, showing off her lithe body, and a khaki skirt that was short but not too short.

          “What are you thinking about?”  She asked him noticing that he seemed distracted.

          “Oh nothing.  You look great.  Shall we?”  He offered his arm and she took it.  They reached the outer door and he went through first so that she could lock it.  They joined arms again and headed for Milford’s.

          “Do you think you’ll ever go back to college?”  He suddenly asked as they walked.  She paused, thinking it over.

          “Well I’d need a loan and somewhere I could go while not leaving my job.  I’m not sure LazyTown Community College will cut it for a Master’s Degree in Education,” Stephanie replied.

          “What about a degree in Criminology?”  Sportacus wondered.

          “Have a Bachelor’s Degree in Education with an Associate’s Degree in Criminology?  Well I suppose so but what would I do with a Criminology degree?”  She asked.

          “Become a police officer, a consultant, a crime writer, or help me fight crime,” he rattled off a few items.

          “Help you fight crime?  I don’t know if you’ve noticed but crime in LazyTown is practically non-existent since Robbie went to jail.  Besides I thought you were starting a lecture series on the benefits of Sports Candy and Exercise?”  Stephanie said.

          “That’s true but it would be great if I could roll a little good citizenship into it as well.  We all know I can’t go on the lecture circuit and leave LazyTown behind,” he smiled and leaned over before kissing her left temple.

          “This is true.  Well maybe we could hold a Web-based lecture series.  Why don’t we both think on it some more and come up with a plan tomorrow at lunch time?”  She asked.

          “Sounds great,” Sportacus continued to smile as they approached the Mayor’s house.  Bessie let them in and soon the party was in full swing.

          Over at FunTown Correctional Facility, the guards came up to Robbie who was sulking in his cell.  Prison had not been kind to him.  He was skinnier than he’d ever been, struggled through cake withdrawal, and had been forced to go to a therapist. 

          “Time to go Rotten.  The warden has your release papers and the condition of your restraining order,” the one guard said.  Robbie only nodded, grabbing his few meager belongings, he followed the guards to the warden’s office.


	3. Chapter 3

The sun shone brightly and the villain cringed.  The prison got sunlight but it was dark inside and quite often he’d found a shady spot when it was yard time.  Most of the prisoners stayed away from him and the guards kept him on a tight leash so being able to stand out at the bus stop waiting for the bus without someone continually looking at him made him feel good.  The bus pulled up, the diesel fumes filled his nostrils, and he smirked.

          “Where to buddy?”  The bus driver asked.

          “LazyTown,” Robbie replied.

          “That’s the last stop on my route.  Hope you don’t mind the long ride,” the driver replied.  Robbie just nodded, paid the man and looked for a seat on the mostly empty bus.  Law-abiding citizens moved away from him and he picked a seat in the back.  The ride gave him time to think and he’d had plenty of that in prison.  Revenge would be so sweet.

          The party was beginning to wind down and the guests were slowly leaving.  It wasn’t too late in the evening but it was late enough that the sun was beginning to set.  People had to be up for work the next day and Sportacus was taking the night shift.  He walked Stephanie back to her place, said goodnight and was on his way.  The hero walked out into the now dark night and looked around.  Things were calm as usual and normally he’d head up to his airship to watch from above but he knew that a certain someone had come back to town and he needed to speak with him.

          The blue elf walked slowly and purposefully toward the giant billboard that wouldn’t fool anyone.  Everyone knew where Robbie lived and it was because of that the billboard hadn’t changed it’s advertisement despite the fact the company went out of business almost a decade before.  The company who owned the billboard couldn’t give that advertising space away.  Seeing most of LazyTown was at home, he walked right behind the billboard and rapped his knuckles on the circular iron door.  From the base of the door, a stand rose up, and the little screen on it turned on.

          “Ah Sportacus, so nice of you to drop by.  One second,” Robbie pressed some buttons and the door opened.  The hero hopped inside and was sucked down the tube.  He was shot out at the bottom but easily landed on his feet after performing a handstand.

          “And I thought only cats landed on their feet,” the villain smirked.

          “Enough with the pleasantries.  I’ve come here to remind you of the condition of your parole and the restraining order placed against you,” Sportacus was all business.

          “Oh don’t worry.  The warden made it perfectly clear what I could and could not do.  As did Chief Dooright; so I think you giving me a lecture is quite unnecessary,” Robbie said.

          “Still I intend to keep my eye on you.  Everyone here has moved on and I’ll not have Stephanie or anyone else suffer because of you,” the hero told him.

          “Well believe it or not, I’m a changed man.  I’ll follow the rules,” the purple wearing man took a seat in his fuzzy orange chair.  Despite the fact the place hadn’t been lived in, in a while, it seemed remarkably clean.  His attitude immediately got the hairs on the back of Sportacus’ neck to stand up.  Something was amiss but he couldn’t put his finger on it.  His crystal remained silent, indicating no immediate danger but he took no comfort in it.  Robbie was already up to no good.

          “Just behave and we’ll have no problems,” Sportacus said before he turned to leave by the same way he came in.

          “I promise to behave,” Robbie told him, his hands behind his back, his fingers crossed.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning came quickly and Stephanie was getting ready for work when her doorbell rang.  Not sure who that could be, she quickly went to answer it.  Looking through the peephole she saw Amanda standing on the other side of the door and she opened it up.

          “Hi!  Is everything ok?”  Stephanie was immediately concerned because her friend should have been headed off to work herself.  She let the woman in and they sat down on the couch.

          “Robbie got out of prison last night,” was all she said.  The pink one closed her eyes and nodded.  She’d actually forgotten about him.

          “Do you need to talk about it?  Did you talk to Pixel?”  Stephanie wondered.

          “He had a big presentation today at work.  He stayed late last night and then this morning he was already out the door when I got the phone call from Chief Dooright,” Amanda explained.  This was obviously very upsetting to her and Stephanie knew she had to be there for her friend.  They had grown close since the incident and shared practically everything with one another.

          “Let me make a phone call and then we can talk all about it,” the other girl promised.  She quickly went to the kitchen, picked up the wall mounted telephone and called the doctor’s office.

          “I’m going to need the day off,” she said into the line.

          “Everything ok?”  Dr. Smith asked; concerned that one of his best employee’s was calling off when she rarely ever did so.

          “Amanda came over.  She isn’t taking Robbie’s release very well,” Stephanie explained.

          “That already happened?  Good Lord,” the doctor shook his head despite the fact that the pink one couldn’t see it.

          “I think I’d better stay with her.  Could you maybe call up Doctor Wainwright?”  She wondered.

          “Absolutely.  Do you need her to give you a call or should I see if she could come over?”  Smith wanted to know.

          “Have her call me.  I appreciate this Doc,” the pink one told him.

          “No problem,” he hung up and immediately called Doctor Wainwright’s office.  He spoke to the therapist who agreed that it could be traumatic for the woman especially given the fact that she suffered a near death experience.  She promised to call as soon as she could and hoped that things could be straightened out.

          Meanwhile, Robbie paced in his lair trying to figure out what to do.  He’d had a brilliant plan whilst in prison but now he was running into trouble putting it all together.  His cleaning robots had already aroused Sportakook’s suspicions and that was good.  Step two had been in the works since he got into prison and the phone call from his patent lawyer confirmed his process was well underway.  Now he had applied for a loan from the bank to buy an empty storefront in the mini-mall in the center of town.  He was still waiting to hear back from them.  He had a good credit rating despite his illegal activities and they’d never shied away before but now it seemed the bank manager wasn’t as friendly as before.

          “What are you thinking about?”  A voice called from behind him.  He turned around to see his faithful robot female companion, Rottenella.

          “Oh you know the usual evil scheme,” he smirked.

          “You promised me a makeover,” she reminded him.  Sometimes he hated the fact that he’d not spent the time to put a smarter chip in her.  It was hard to hold a conversation with such a logic engine.

          “All in due time.  Let me secure the loan from the bank and then we’ll go from there,” he promised.  She nodded and headed back to the kitchen to make cake.


	5. Chapter 5

“I really appreciate you calling Doctor Wainwright,” Stephanie said upon finding out who the phone call was from.  The pink one had put breakfast together and managed to get Amanda to eat something.  She’d perked up after that but there were obvious signs that something was still amiss.

          “Absolutely Stephanie.  Can you give me details?” the therapist asked.

          “Well she seems out of it.  I mean she came over wanting to talk but pulling explanations out of her is like pulling taffy out of Ziggy’s teeth,” Stephanie told her.

          “Uh huh, anything else been going on in her life?  Stress at work?  Stress at home?”  Wainwright wondered.

          “She just found out she’s pregnant,” the young woman said.

          “And there is the secondary stressor.  Ok, can you bring her in?  I can move a few appointments around,” the doctor wanted to know.

          “I can try.  See you soon,” with that Stephanie hung up and turned to her friend, who was sitting on the couch.

          “We’re going for a ride,” the pink one smiled. 

          “That was the therapist wasn’t it?”  Amanda asked, one of her very few lucid statements of the morning.

          “Yes it was.  She’ll know what to do.  I wish I knew what to do,” Stephanie admitted.  Amanda only nodded and the two left the apartment and headed for the car.

          While the girls tried to figure out what to do, Sportacus was in Chief Dooright’s new office which had finally been completed last year.  Originally, the police station was going to get a few cosmetic makeovers but with money raised through charity events and people making donations, the building was gutted and redone.

          “What’s on your mind Sportacus?”  The Chief asked as he offered a seat to the above average hero.

          “Robbie,” was all he needed to say and the head of Police nodded.

          “I kind of figured,” he paused and pressed the intercom button on his desk, “Rose would you send him in please?”

          “Right away Chief,” came the reply and a few moments later in walked Phillip Brown, loan officer at LazyTown Bank.

          “Morning gentlemen, I just want to say I’m acting on President Hayes behalf today,” the tall lean man wore a brown pressed suit and glasses that looked like they’d been pulled from the nineteen sixties.  His short dark hair was gelled back to perfection.  Sportacus had met him only once but he knew that if he was here and acting on behalf of the bank’s President then there must be trouble.

          “I was just about to see if I could find you when you stopped by.  Mr. Brown is here because Robbie applied for a business loan,” Dooright explained.

          “A business loan?”  Sportacus’s guard was immediately up.

          “Yes and on his application he intends to buy a store front at the mini-mall and sell an invention he’s having patented.  Now the patenting process takes a long time but he’s apparently already started the process from prison and he had his lawyer contact me so I could verify.  Technically the bank cannot refuse such a loan based on the fact that Mr. Rotten has excellent credit and we’ve loaned to him before.  He manages to pay his bills despite not having an actual job claiming family money.  There has been no way to disprove this so I’m afraid we’re in a tight fix.  Not only that I’m sure he’s wondering what is taking so long with the application process.  Usually we tell people we need a week to run a credit check, look at their existing accounts, and inspect the building, and the paperwork associated with it, that the loan is being taken out for.  However, he had his lawyer start the application before he got out of prison and our standard week is up,” Mr. Brown told them.

          “Well you have no choice but to give him the loan, I do however appreciate the heads up,” Chief Dooright said.

          “Gentlemen, I certainly hope you understand the ramifications if this goes bad.  LazyTown Bank cannot be seen giving money to a convicted felon what with the publicity we’ve been getting for the scandal our Vice-President caused,” Mr. Brown was obviously unhappy.

          “Yes well Mr. Tittleton is serving a healthy federal sentence for his attempted fraud and there is no legal reason for you to not give him the loan.  I’ll increase police patrols and we’ll keep an eye on him but that’s the best we can do,” the Chief shrugged his shoulders.  Mr. Brown was not pleased but told them good day and left.

          “So what do you think he’s up to?”  Dooright turned to Sportacus.

          “I wish I knew,” the hero shook his head.


	6. Chapter 6

“You don’t know what this means to me Mr. Brown,” Robbie smiled at the man across the desk from him.

          “The bank will back you one hundred percent in this venture but know that if any payment is missed, all your assets will be frozen until we receive a payment,” Mr. Brown explained.

          “Since when does that happen?”  The villain asked immediately suspicious.

          “It is a new policy what with the housing market in turmoil and small businesses everywhere struggling to make ends meet, we are attempting to not lose money on all new deals struck after the first of this year.  Since that was almost six months ago, your deal falls under this policy,” Brown told him.

          “Sounds reasonable, I guess,” Robbie nodded as he finished signing the papers.  The loan would cover the first month’s rent and the necessary construction upgrades to the store’s inside.

          “All right Mr. Rotten, you’ll have your money in a couple of days,” Mr. Brown said, his face remaining emotionless.

          “Looking forward to it,” Robbie smirked and left the bank.  Mr. Brown shook his head and went about getting everything in order.  He’d done all he could and now it was up to the police and Sportacus to keep this from going awry.  Shaking his head again the bank’s loan manager, tried to hurry with the paperwork.

          “So what are you in for?”  A friendly, good-looking young man asked Stephanie as she waited outside in the waiting room for Amanda.

          “I’m with my friend,” she smiled.

          “Oh she’s the one with the trouble then?”  He asked.

          “Yes,” Stephanie kept her answers short unsure of what this person was trying to do.

          “Well I guess not everybody can be a head case,” he smirked and reached down to adjust his pant leg which had lodged inside the tongue of his shoe.  It was then that she noticed his leg wasn’t a leg at all but some sort of plastic.

          “How’d you get that?”  The pink one wondered.

          “RPG hit our convoy.  Enough shrapnel went into my leg from the knee down that they couldn’t save it.  They tell me it was a mess.  All I know is I woke up in a hospital where people were speaking German.  Figured if I ended up back there, my days of fighting the war were over,” he replied. 

          “You ever feel weird wearing shorts?”  She asked.

          “Well I like to hide this until I get a new model.  My doctor says I should be getting one soon,” he smiled.  That’s when Stephanie pulled up her pant leg, showing off the nasty scars left by the surgery that had put her shin back together.

          “I guess being at home didn’t help you much,” he gave a low whistle.

          “Robbie Rotten.  That’s why my friend is in there.  My name is Stephanie by the way,” the pink one said.

          “Sam,” he extended his hand and they shook.  That’s when Sportacus entered the room and rushed over to her.

          “What’s going on?”  He asked.

          “You’re that Stephanie?”  Sam’s eyes went wide.

          “If ‘that Stephanie’ you mean the Mayor’s niece, then yes,” she smiled and introduced the two men.

          “It’s an honor sir,” Sam smiled.

          “No the honor is all mine,” Sportacus shook his hand.  Then Stephanie quickly explained the situation for the above average hero.

          “I’ll get a hold of Pixel.  He should know.  Besides I need you and he’ll be able to give her a ride home,” Sportacus kissed her temple and took off.

          “Just when I thought I was getting somewhere,” Sam shook his head.

          “You’ll find the right one for you, Sam, I know it,” Stephanie gave him a wink.


	7. Chapter 7

          Amanda’s session ended shortly after Sportacus left and Stephanie stayed with her friend until Pixel arrived about twenty minutes later.  Both he and Amanda thanked her for her help and went off to see about her getting some rest.  Stephanie got up and was about to leave when Sam exited the therapist’s office.

          “That was a quick hour,” she remarked, realizing he’d only been in there forty minutes.

          “Doc has another emergency out at FunTown hospital.  I guess one of her patients just tried to off himself,” he shook his head.

          “I guess everyone is having a bad day,” Stephanie said sadly as she watched Doctor Wainwright rush out of the office.

          “Oh I don’t know.  I met the Mayor’s niece and Sportacus all in one day.  My day is shaping up pretty good.  So how’s your friend?”  He asked.

          “Better I think but it may take some time.  Robbie just getting out of prison has her on edge what with her first baby on the way and all the nightmares she has from that day.  Pixel is good for her and he’ll help her through,” the pink one smiled.

          “Ah so she’s married and she’s afraid it’ll all come back to haunt her with Robbie on the loose.  I get it.  For a long time a car backfire made me jump and duck for cover.  Thankfully I’m past that point but the nightmares don’t go away,” Sam shook his head and pushed his right hand through his dark brown hair.  He was a little taller than Sportacus but not by much and he was built like a brick, something Stephanie always admired in a man.  She couldn’t help but think that if Sportacus had never come into her life she might have ended up with the man standing across from her.

          “Well I’d best get out to the bus stop.  I’ll miss the twelve-thirty bus and then I won’t get home for a long while,” he smiled and stuck his hand out to shake Stephanie’s.  She instead pulled him into a hug.

          “Are you sure Sportacus won’t beat me up if he sees this?”  He chuckled.

          “Sometimes everyone needs a hug and no Sportacus doesn’t beat people up unless your name starts with Robbie and ends with Rotten,” she explained as they pulled apart.

          “Good to know,” Sam smiled.

          “You want a ride home?  I have to meet Sportacus over by the airship, I might be able to drop you somewhere,” Stephanie offered as they exited the doctor’s office.

          “That’s really very nice of you but I live on the other side of town,” the veteran told her.

          “Well then I guess this is where we part ways.  Good luck with everything,” she smiled.

          “Thanks,” he smiled back and headed for the bus stop out at the street.  Stephanie found her car and took off to find Sportacus.  Ziggy was on patrol and he waved to her as she drove past him helping Mrs. McGill get her cat out of the tree again.  Upon arriving at the airship, she parked her car at the nearby park-n-ride and headed back toward the ladder.       

          “There you are.  Everything go ok?”  Sportacus asked.

          “Yes I think so.  Pixel took her home and we’ll see tomorrow,” she smiled.

          “Want to join me?”  He moved his eyebrows up toward his airship.  She hadn’t been up there since that night almost four years ago; a night that the two of them still refused to talk about.  She wasn’t entirely sure why because they were consenting adults but she figured it was for the Mayor’s sake that they didn’t announce to the world what had transpired.  The fact of the matter was, they were sneaking around behind his back and seeing each other at night.  Everyone knew they were dating and most people probably figured they were doing more than just going to the movies and dinner.  Just thinking about the two of them playing superhero and damsel in distress gave her chills and she visibly shivered.

          “You ok?”  The hero started to get concerned after she didn’t reply to him and then shivered like that.

          “I’ll be fine,” she nodded before getting on her tiptoes and whispering something into his ear.

          “Well I am off duty,” he smirked before he jumped onto the ladder and she followed him.  Staring at his backside the whole way up was going to kill her.  Needless to say once they were inside the airship she jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist.

          “Don’t leave me hanging,” she teased.

          “I think we need to talk about Robbie first,” he had this deflated look on his face.

          “Is he trying something?”  The pink one asked now a bit deflated herself as she untangled herself from him. 

          “Maybe,” the hero said.

          “You’re killing the mood because of a maybe?”  Now she was upset.

          “Well knowing Robbie it probably isn’t a maybe but I’m not sure,” Sportacus admitted.

          “Then I’ll tell you what you kiss me and tell me that you want to talk and we’ll finish this later or you can kiss me and we’ll finish this now and talk later.  Those are your only options,” she told him knowing full well once their lips met in this charged environment, it was all over.  He knew it too and smirked before scooping her up into his arms and carrying her over to the bed.


	8. Chapter 8

“So you wanna remind me again what exactly we’re doing?”  Trixie asked her best friend as they sat inside Stephanie’s car about two hours later.  It was parked in the parking lot of the mini-mall in front of the dress shop which happened to be right next to the store front that Robbie had purchased.

          “We’re doing a little reconnaissance on Robbie.  See if he comes by the store and what exactly he’s trying to sell,” Stephanie explained again.

          “And we had to do it in your beat up car that doesn’t have air conditioning because?”  Trixie wondered.

          “Because no one is going to notice a ten year old car that could use a paint job sitting in a mini-mall parking lot.  Besides the sun will be going down soon and things will start to cool off,” the pink one reminded her.

          “We’re not staying here that long are we?  We’ve got at least another three hours before the sun heads down and I haven’t had anything to eat since lunch,” her friend complained.

          “Why’d I bring you along again?”  Stephanie wanted to know.

          “Because your new best friend is having a melt down and no one else is available,” Trixie shot back.  This caused the pink one to look at her friend.

          “Trixie, you’re my best friend.  How could you say that?”  She looked hurt.

          “You’re always hanging out with Amanda.  The only time I get a phone call is when you need something,” the trickster said.

          “I’ll admit we’ve grown close but she saved my life.  It was bound to happen.  We share a lot in common and you’ve been pretty busy dodging your future in-laws,” Stephanie pointed out. 

          “He hasn’t proposed to me yet.  I doubt he ever will.  The man has serious issues,” Trixie grumbled.

          “All men do but you know he loves you and you know how he feels about you dodging the invites you keep getting to go over to his folks’ place.  Maybe he intends to propose at their house,” her friend said.  Trixie thought about that for a few minutes.

          “He has been acting weird lately,” she said.

          “More than usual?”  Stephanie teased.  For that she got a quick punch in the upper arm.

          “Ok say you’re right.  Not exactly the most romantic place in LazyTown, his folks’ place,” Trixie raised an eyebrow.

          “No, maybe not but maybe they want to go out to a fancy restaurant or maybe the only reason your possible in-laws want to see you is because they can’t believe Stingy has had a girlfriend for so long,” more teasing earned Stephanie another whack.  Suddenly the two girls heard a knock on the window of the car and Stephanie turned her head to find someone’s muscled midsection blocking her view.  She rolled the window down and asked,

          “Can I help you?”

          “Can I see your license and registration?  The dress shop complained you’ve been sitting out here,” the voice said.  Stephanie immediately recognized it and said,

          “That’s twice in one day,”

          “I know but I couldn’t resist,” Sam leaned over and stuck his head in the window.

          “You know this guy?”  Trixie asked.

          “We met earlier today at Doctor Wainwright’s office,” Stephanie explained.

          “I’m Sam, Head of Mall security, at your service ma’am,” the strapping young man smiled.

          “Did the dress shop really complain?”  Trixie wondered.

          “No but I’ve been doing my rounds and noticed you’d been sitting there for a little while.  The pink hair was a giveaway that I needed to hassle you,” he teased.

          “We’re helping out Sportacus, wanna join?”  Stephanie asked.

          “Absolutely.  I don’t get off duty until the last shop closes at seven.  You’ll have to move your car by then,” he pointed out.

          “No problem.  We’ll meet you at the Chinese place down the block at seven-fifteen?”  Stephanie wondered.

          “See you then,” Sam smiled and walked away.  Stephanie then explained to Trixie what had transpired in the morning and how she’d met the attractive young man.

          “Well perhaps he can use his keys to help us out,” Trixie waggled her eyebrows.

          “I hope so,” her friend smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

At seven-fifteen, Sam walked into the Chinese restaurant and saw the girls.  He quickly grabbed a seat and smiled.

          “Good to see I didn’t get stood up,” he laughed.

          “Stand you up?  Who would do that?”  Stephanie asked.

          “My last girlfriend; she couldn’t take the new me.  I guess I can’t blame her.  I was in very bad shape when I came home,” Sam looked thoughtful and Trixie immediately changed the subject.

          “So, as the security guy do you have keys to the shops?”

          “As the “security guy”, yes I do but if you want me to break any rules, I’m afraid I can’t do that,” Sam said.

          “What breaking the rules?  All we need is to take a peek around the store front Robbie is leasing,” Stephanie smiled.

          “Well in that case, I may be able to do you a favor, provided I get one in return,” the former soldier told them.

          “What’s that?”  Trixie asked cautiously.

          “I want in on the action.  Whatever you’re doing, I want in,” Sam said.

          “Deal.  It’ll be really helpful that you work at the mall Robbie doesn’t know you and you can get into places none of us could,” Stephanie agreed.  The older Chinese lady from behind the counter came over and asked what they wanted for dinner.  They quickly ordered and the lady ducked back behind the counter.

          “Off topic question but you know when you order, why is it always fifteen minutes?”  Trixie asked.

          “No matter what your order is right?”   Sam smirked.

          “Yeah,” Trixie nodded.  The proprietor of the restaurant overheard them talking and chuckled.  He walked over with a dish full of fortune cookies and said,

          “It’s an Ancient Chinese secret, as the Boy Scouts say, Always Be Prepared.”

          “Pre-chopping, I suspect,” Stephanie smiled.

          “On the nosy but you didn’t hear that from me,” the man smiled and left them the cookies.  Dinner was uneventful and the three were soon talking like they’d known each other all their lives.  After dinner, they headed back to the mall and snuck in the back entrance to Robbie’s store.

          “What are we looking for?”  Sam asked.

          “Anything that points toward a shady deal,” Trixie said.  The group fanned out through the building.  Luckily, the sun gave them enough light to see what happened to be lying around.

          “When the night guard comes by, make yourselves scarce,” Sam warned, not wanting to get caught.  His job and their advantage over Robbie would go out the window if he got fired.  They continued to look through the space but came up empty.

          “There doesn’t seem to be anything here,” Stephanie was confused.

          “Well maybe he hasn’t moved anything in yet,” Trixie shrugged.

          “I did some digging at the office while I was waiting for my shift to end.  He’s supposed to be opening the store by the end of next week,” Sam said.

          “With no merchandise or new paint job?”  Stephanie shook her head.

          “I have no answer to that.  I can check the footage and see if anything comes up,” he said.

          “Sounds good.  Let’s get out of here,” Trixie jerked her head in the direction of the door.

          “Good call,” Stephanie nodded.  They headed back to the door and just as Sam went for the knob, it began to turn.


	10. Chapter 10

Robbie pulled open the door to his shop and walked into the back of the area.  He looked for the light switch only to find it not working.

          “Are you going to stand outside all night?”  He asked.  Timidly, a woman entered the room with him.

          “I think my eyes are failing,” she said.

          “I’ll have a look at them when we get the lights on.  Let’s find the circuit breaker box,” the villain told her.  She nodded and they wandered around looking for the panel.  Quietly, Sam emerged from his hiding spot behind one of the previous store’s displays.  He motioned to Stephanie to head for the door from her hiding space not far from him.  She nodded, looked around quickly and scooted out of the door and into the bushes which were on the other side of the truck delivery driveway.  From her hiding spot, she watched Trixie come out of the door and she motioned for her to join her.

          “Where is Sam?”  Stephanie asked.

          “He should be right behind me,” Trixie shrugged.  That’s when they noticed the lights in the store come on.  Stephanie strained to hear if their friend had been noticed but the voices were too low.

          “We need to help him,” she said.

          “How?  We can’t exactly go waltzing up to Robbie and talk to him.  He’ll suspect something,” her best friend reminded her.  Then they heard laughter and they looked at one another.

          “Well you have a good night sir.  Sorry to have scared you,” Sam smiled as he exited the building.  He looked around for the girls but did not see them and headed back toward the parking lot.  He was still wearing his uniform so Stephanie figured he talked his way out once the lights came on.  Watching the door close, the two emerged from their hiding places and ran up to him.

          “What happened?”  Trixie asked.

          “I told him I was checking the rodent traps.  The store had been empty for a while and it was customary for me to check the traps at the end of my shift,” Sam shrugged.

          “And what excuse did you give him about not hearing him come in?”  Stephanie wondered.

          “Told him my hearing was damaged in the war,” the former soldier smirked.

          “You’re good,” the pink one chuckled.

          “I believe there is something Sportacus should know though,” Sam said as they reached his car.

          “What’s that?”  Trixie asked.

          “Well that woman that walked in with Robbie, he was using a screwdriver to fix her eyes,” he said it as if he almost didn’t believe it.

          “Rottenella!”  Stephanie cursed under her breath.

          “But it didn’t look like her,” Trixie said.

          “He can’t show up with the robot that tried to defeat me.  He has to make her look different after all these years,” the twenty-five year old told her.

          “That’s a point,” her friend said.

          “Who is Rottenella?”  Sam asked.

          “Long story.  I’ll tell you on the way.  Trixie, would you take my car and I’ll catch a ride with Sam?”  The pink one wondered.

          “You sure?  I mean what if you need to get your car?”  Trixie asked.

          “I shouldn’t need it tonight.  I can pick it up in the morning or maybe Sportacus will help me get it tonight.  Just lock the keys in it and I’ll use my spare,” she smiled.  Trixie nodded, took her friend’s keys and they split up.


	11. Chapter 11

“Rottenella?  Are you sure?”  Sportacus asked after Stephanie and Sam described their evening.

          “It has to be.  When did he have time to build another robot while he was in prison?”  Stephanie pointed out.  The above average hero nodded.

          “So what’s the end game?  What does Robbie have to gain by using this Rottenella to run his store?”  Sam was confused by what this all meant and he sat down on the park bench where they had met Sportacus near the airship.  The blue suited hero paced for a few minutes and then something struck him.

          “Who better to run the store than someone he doesn’t have to pay, give benefits to, or even bathroom breaks?”  He asked.

          “His own personal anti-theft device.  She’d never leave her post,” Stephanie said.

          “Right which leaves Robbie free to do as he wishes.  She’ll probably be handling every aspect of the store.  She does all the work while he takes all the profits and uses them to buy things.  Things he can use for evil purposes,” Sportacus told them.

          “Gotcha.  But what could he be planning?  I mean from what I understand, you’ve been beating him for years.  What could he possibly have now that could defeat you?”  Sam wondered.

          “I don’t know but when I visited him, to tell him to stay away from everyone, his place was immaculate.  I mean it looked like it had been lived in despite him being away for three years,” the above average hero shook his head.

          “Rottenella did all the cleaning,” Stephanie said.

          “No, it couldn’t have been.  He was arrested on the spot upon Ziggy and the three officers busting into his place to save you.  After that, he spent every waking moment in police custody,” her boyfriend pointed out.

          “Right and somehow he manages to activate her remotely?  Maybe his lawyer turned her on before Robbie was released?”  Sam asked.

          “A possibility but even a robot needs maintenance.  She would have been very out of shape from the last time we saw her sixteen years ago,” Sportacus shook his head.

          “Wait.  What is he selling in the store?”  Stephanie wanted to know.

          “According to the lease he signed, Home Handy Helpers.  Whatever those are,” Sam said.

          “See if you can get us more information on what they are supposed to be.  In the meantime, I think Stephanie and I better pay a visit to Pixel and Amanda.  We’re going to need all hands on deck if Robbie is cooking up something,” the hero told the former soldier.

          “You got it.  Thanks again for letting me join your little bunch of crime fighters.  It makes me feel good,” Sam smiled as he stood and shook Sportacus’ hand. 

          “Anytime.  I’m glad to have someone with your skill set helping us out,” the above average hero smiled.  They both said good-bye and watched Sam drive off.

          “Shall we get your car?  I think Pixel may be able to help us keep an eye on Robbie,” Sportacus said, extending his arm for her to link with.

          “Sounds like a plan.  I hope Amanda is all right,” Stephanie nodded as she took his arm and they began to walk to Trixie’s.

          “I’m sure she’ll be fine.  It will just take awhile for her to get used to dealing with the whole situation.  If we can put this Robbie business to bed then she’ll be better,” he tried to reassure her.

          “I don’t know.  You didn’t see her at my apartment.  She was almost catatonic,” the pink one wasn’t so sure.

          “With the help of her friends and Pixel, she’ll be fine.  I’ve seen it before.  Most often the person just needs to confront their fears.  Although my people were a little different when it came to things such as these,” Sportacus said.

          “From what you’ve told me, this is true.  Well perhaps you can talk to her.  I’m sure that if she talks to someone who has been through something like that will make her feel better,” Stephanie smiled.  They completed the remainder of the trip to Trixie’s in silence, contemplating what was in store for them next.


	12. Chapter 12

“Hey guys.  Thanks for stopping by,” Pixel smiled as he opened the door to the house.

          “We wanted to check up on things and to ask your help,” Sportacus smiled back as their friend let them in.

          “Sounds interesting.  What are we talking about?”  The Gizmo Guy asked as they walked toward the living room.

          “Surveillance on a certain someone,” Stephanie said.

          “A certain someone who shall remain nameless,” Sportacus told him as they entered the living room.

          “Right,” Pixel nodded, getting the gist.  He turned to Amanda and said,

          “Look who’s here babe.”

          “Well well if it isn’t our good friends, Team Purple.  Here to make sure my brains are still intact?”  Amanda teased.

          “Team Purple?”  Stephanie wondered.

          “Blue and pink make purple, do they not?”  Amanda asked.

          “I swear some days I must be blonde,” her friend shook her head.

          “But I love you anyway,” Sportacus teased.  At this everyone laughed.

          “Now down to business,” the above average hero said, changing the subject.

          “Yes.  Pixel, I need to borrow you for a little bit,” Stephanie smiled.

          “Of course.  To the Batcave!” he said.

          “Or the den, as I like to call it,” Amanda chuckled.

          “I don’t know.  Batcave is pretty cool,” the pink one smirked as Pixel led the way to their computer hideout.

          “So my guess is you’re going to try to shrink me, is that it?”  Amanda turned to Sportacus.

          “Nope.  I’m just here as a concerned friend who has dealt with situations like this.  I’m just wondering if I can help,” he smiled.

          “I gave everyone a good scare huh?”  She asked as she plopped down on the sofa.

          “Stephanie was very worried.  If Stephanie is worried, I worry.  It’s kind of a trickle-down effect,” he laughed as he joined her.

          “Ziggy stopped by earlier and so did Trixie with Stingy.  I’ve managed to worry everyone,” she sighed.

          “Means you’re well loved,” he pointed out.

          “Yes it does,” she smiled.

          “You call your folks about your little surprise?”  Sportacus wondered.

          “I did.  They are absolutely thrilled and promised to be on the next flight out.  I told them to wait until they could secure some vacation time.  No point in rushing out to see my non-existent baby bump,” Amanda told him.

          “That makes sense but if you ever want to talk, you know where to find me ok?”  The hero brought the conversation back around.

          “I appreciate that and I may take you up on that soon but I don’t want to dwell.  If I can help with whatever is going on, I’d like to,” she said.

          “Even if it deals with Robbie?”  Sportacus wondered.

          “Yes, if it prevents him from hurting other people,” she nodded.

          “All right then, let’s go find out what Pixel and Stephanie are up to,” the hero smiled and stood up from his seat.  She joined him and they went down the hall to see what the other two were up to.


	13. Chapter 13

“So what have we got?”  Sportacus asked as he entered the den.

          “Well I’ve hacked into the town’s street camera mainframe and I’ve managed to locate some stored images that might help us out,” Pixel explained.

          “Boy that angle sucks.  Can we do anything to fix it?”  Amanda wondered as she pulled up a chair at the computer terminal next to him and began tapping away on the keyboard.

          “Well the stored images are stuck this way but if you can access the camera itself, we may be able to turn it and get some good new images from there,” her husband said.

          “On it like white on rice.  You keep looking for old images,” she nodded.

          “How long does the system store them?”  Stephanie asked; glad to see her friend in better spirits.

          “Only two days and then it dumps them,” Pixel told them.

          “Well that stinks,” the pink one said.

          “The number of images it goes through, I’m surprised it holds that many,” Her friend smiled.

          “You can thank yours truly for that.  I told them when they installed it what they needed,” Amanda smirked.

          “Which is why you hacked into it so easily?”  Sportacus wondered.

          “Considering the fact that my company created and installed it, yes,” she smiled.

          “Will anyone notice the intrusion?”  Stephanie asked.

          “It should set off alarm bells at my company, except it won’t because this is my designated home terminal from work.  It will set off alarms at the mainframe at Police Headquarters but I think they’ll call here first so…” she shrugged and got back to work with the cameras.

          “All righty, I have Robbie going to and from the store with what looks like Rottenella on multiple occasions.  Nothing crime worthy yet though,” Pixel said.

          “Maybe Sam has had more luck,” Stephanie shrugged as the two computer wizards continued doing what they do best in an effort to catch Robbie at something.

          “Sir we have a breech!”  One of the IT guys yelled from his desk, which alerted everyone down at Police Headquarters.  Immediately officers began shutting down terminals, unplugging equipment, and running around to the servers. Chief Dooright left his office and calmly walked over to the man who was furiously pounding away at the keyboard trying to keep the hackers out.

          “Isolate that IP address and tell me who we are dealing with,” he told the man.

          “Yes sir,” he continued to pound away until the IP address popped up.  Dooright took one look at it and shook his head.

          “False alarm people!  It’s just Pixel!”  Immediately everyone froze and shrugged their shoulders.  Calmly they returned to their work turning things back on.

          “I’ve got a phone call to make,” the Chief said as he headed back to his office.  There must have been a very good reason for the Gizmo Guy to hack in without some sort of notification first.

          Meanwhile, Sam was reviewing the footage of the store front Robbie had bought.  He watched in amazement at the speed Rottenella had as she quickly refurbished the inside of the place.  Soon the product was on the shelves and he cocked an eyebrow,

          “What is so scary about cleaning robots?” he wondered.  He continued to watch as Rottenella unpacked the circular devices that swept the floor.  There were some that were about two feet tall and he wasn’t sure what they did but it seemed like the next time Robbie was there, he should ask some questions.


	14. Chapter 14

“The reason I called you here this morning was because of what happened last night.  Pixel told me it was a long story, so fill me in,” Chief Dooright said as he moved behind his desk and sat down.  Sportacus stood near the door to the Chief’s office while Pixel stood nearby and the ladies sat in the chairs in front of the desk.

          “Well what we have been piecing together doesn’t make sense.  It seems as though Robbie has turned over a new leaf,” Stephanie shrugged.

          “How so?”  The Chief seemed skeptical.

          “Well there doesn’t seem to be any evidence of ill will toward anyone.  I mean he smiles at people, as creepy as that sounds, and he has been nice to the security guards at the mall,” Sportacus explained.

          “That doesn’t bother you?”  Dooright asked.

          “Oh it’s bothersome all right but until he makes a misstep we’re stuck,” Amanda shrugged.

          “She has a valid point,” Pixel said.

          “This is true.  I guess we may have to face the fact that we’re all paranoid,” the Chief pointed out.

          “Can you blame us?”  Stephanie smirked.  Dooright smirked back and shook his head because he couldn’t.

          Meanwhile, Sam walked over to the store during his shift and knocked on the glass door and Robbie walked over and opened the door, an uncharacteristic smile on his face.

          “Sorry to bother you.  How is everything?”  The former soldier asked.

          “Pretty good.  Should be ready to open soon,” the villain said as he let him in.

          “That’s great.  What exactly is it that you’re selling?”  Sam wondered.

          “Cleaning robots of my own invention,” Robbie told him.

          “That’s cool.  Do you have any patents?”  The security guard inquired.

          “We’re in the process,” Robbie smiled.

          “That’s awesome.  Well I won’t take up any more of your time but you know my curiosity got to me,” Sam joked.

          “Oh yeah well that’s good.  Tell you what,” Robbie paused and went over to one of the shelves that had been setup.

          “You seem like a very cool guy.  Why don’t you be my first customer?  On the house,” the villain said as he handed the medium sized box that had the product labels all over it.

          “Really?  I mean you sure?”  Sam asked.

          “Sure.  If anything doesn’t work, you come straight to me and I’ll fix it,” Robbie told him.

          “Thanks,” the security guard smiled.

          “Don’t forget the double A batteries!”  The villain smiled back and watched as Sam walked away back towards his office.  Once he was out of earshot, Robbie turned to Rottenella and said,

          “Activate the lojack.”

          “Should I activate the ray?”  She wondered.

          “Not yet.  Let’s see where he goes with it,” he smirked.

          “What are you thinking?”  Rottenella asked.

          “He may just be a nice guy but he seems to be around an awful lot,” Robbie’s suspicions bubbled to the surface.

          “Well I looked into the mall’s hiring history and there appears to only be three security guards on the payroll,” the robot told him.

          “Makes sense then that he’d be around a lot.  But still… maybe I’m just paranoid,” Robbie shrugged.

          “I can’t blame you,” she shrugged as well.


	15. Chapter 15

“So he just gave you one?”  Stephanie asked as she paced back and forth at the precinct.  She had excused herself from the meeting when her cell phone rang and her new friend had filled her in on what had happened.

          “I know, right?”  Sam said over the line.

          “Stay put at the end of your shift.  I want Pixel looking that thing over,” the pink one told him.

          “All right.  I get out in an hour, see you then,” the former soldier nodded despite her not being able to see and the call ended.  Stephanie ducked back into the room and Sportacus looked at her.  She had that look on her face like she was deep in thought and that didn’t bode well if who he thought called had called.

          “Who was on the phone?”  He asked.

          “Sam.  Robbie gave him a cleaning robot.  Apparently that’s what he’ll be selling in his store,” she replied.

          “Then why the look?”  Amanda wanted to know.

          “Seems odd doesn’t it?  I mean Robbie doesn’t clean anything,” Stephanie said.

          “Yes but robots would explain why his place was so clean when I told him to watch his back,” Sportacus nodded.

          “Point,” Pixel agreed.

          “I told him to stay put and that we’d swing by and have a look see,” the pink one motioned to Pixel.

          “A brilliant idea.  Meantime, someone needs to fill Trixie and Stingy in,” Amanda said.

          “You and I can do that,” Sportacus smiled at her.

          “I think that settles it.  Now I have to get back to the other crime plaguing our little town,” Chief Dooright told them.

          “We’ll fill you in later,” Stephanie promised.

          “Sounds good,” the Chief nodded and the friends headed out to their assignments.  Before leaving the group they all promised to meet back at the Mayor’s to fill him in.

          “So, how are you doing?”  Sportacus asked as he and Amanda walked toward Trixie’s place. 

          Are you going to keep asking that?”  She looked at him.      

“Until I get a straight answer, yes,” he smirked.

“Well I think I’m ok.  I mean I still get nightmares occasionally but the doctor said I would.  It could be a lot worse,” she pointed out.

“Like the other day?”  He wondered.

“Exactly.  I find if I don’t think about him, it helps, although my fear of robot dogs probably won’t ever go away,” she laughed but he could tell she was tense.

“How about a real dog?  You know man’s best friend can be very good for you,” the above average hero.

“With a baby on the way?”  Amanda raised an eyebrow.

“Hey I’m not saying you buy a Rottweiler, all I’m saying is, talk to Doctor Dyggert.  As a vet, he’ll know what you’re looking for and he’ll help you out.  A therapy dog may be just the thing,” Sportacus winked as they knocked on Trixie’s door.


	16. Chapter 16

“Hey guys, come on in,” Sam smiled and let them into the small office.  They walked through a narrow hallway to his own office and he showed them the chairs he had managed to squeeze in.

          “How do you work in here?  I feel like a sardine,” Stephanie involuntarily shivered.

          “You get used to it.  Besides you ever been in a foxhole?”  He smirked and then he handed the box over to Pixel containing the cleaning robot.

          “Did you open this?”  The Gizmo Guy wanted to know.

          “Nope.  Thought I’d better not,” Sam told him.  Pixel nodded and whipped out the little monitor that went with his new and improved wrist computer.  He pulled a wand out of his pocket and ran it over the box.

          “What’s he doing?”  Sam asked.  

          “Sweeping for bugs,” Stephanie smiled.  The security guard nodded and watched as Pixel completed the sweep.

          “Nothing comes up on my scanner but I’d like to take it back to my place to do a more complete sweep for other devices,” Pixel said.

          “What else could he have put in there?”  Stephanie wanted to know.

          “Listening devices aren’t the only thing that can be placed inside a piece of machinery.  I mean he could have a GPS tracker or something in there,” the Gizmo Guy explained.  Before anyone could say anything else, there was a knock on the door.  Sam moved toward the door and cautiously looked through the peephole that resided there for his own safety.

          “It’s Robbie!  Hide!”  He whispered to his friends who quickly ducked under the desk.

          “Good afternoon sir, anything wrong?”  Sam asked upon opening the door and letting Robbie in.

          “No, I just wanted you to know that I’m officially opening at nine am tomorrow and that the owners know it,” the villain smiled.

          “Great, I’ll prepare for the opening and give a heads up to the night watchman.  Did Benny let you in?”  Sam wondered.

          “He did, we bumped into one another as he was leaving for his rounds,” Robbie nodded.

          “Good.  Sometimes he worries me,” the security guard said.

          “Why is that?”  It was an odd thing to say and the villain wondered what he was getting at.

          “Oh I probably shouldn’t have said anything but sometimes Benny forgets to lock the outside door.  It’s good to know if I need to do it on my way out,” Sam explained.

          “Ah, well I won’t keep you.  I’m sure you have other things to do.  I’m on my way out as well,” Robbie smiled and Sam escorted him to the outside door and locked it after Robbie left.

          “Why’d you tell him that?”  Pixel asked after he and Stephanie escaped from their hiding place.

          “Because Benny stashes all the security tapes in his area but he doesn’t know I have a private camera that watches his desk too.  Apparently the guy I took over for was paranoid,” Sam said.

          “You think Robbie will try to steal the tapes?”  Stephanie wondered.

          “Well if he ever needed to the window has now been left open.  I mean after all, there might be something juicy on one of those tapes,” the security guard smiled.  Pixel smirked, grabbed the robot, and the three of them headed out.

          Meanwhile, Robbie watched the movement of the robot on his phone.  He watched until it disappeared into Pixel’s house at which point, he raced home.  This could be his opportunity.


	17. Chapter 17

“So what did you find?”  Trixie asked as she, Stingy, Sportacus, and Amanda entered the den at Pixel’s home.

          “Well so far nothing, which is weird,” Pixel shook his head.

          “Maybe it isn’t.  I mean maybe we’re way off base,” Sam shrugged.

          “He could be right.  Maybe prison really changed Robbie,” Sportacus nodded.

          “When pigs fly,” Stephanie spat.

          “I’m more inclined to agree with Steph,” Amanda nodded.  They got wrapped up in their debate about Robbie and didn’t notice what Pixel had discovered.

          “What the…” the Gizmo Guy didn’t finish his sentence as a red ray shot out of the robot’s sensor and his mind blanked.  He froze as though he’d been shot with an ice ray.  Amanda turned to see her husband staring blankly off into space and asked,

          “Pixel?  What’s wrong?”  He didn’t respond and she shook him.

          “What’s wrong?”  She asked again.

          “Where am I?”  He asked.

          “What do you mean?”  Sportacus was getting concerned at the sudden memory loss of the young man but before he could do anything the red ray shot out again, blanketing the entire room.  The entire group blanked out for a few moments and they looked at each other like they weren’t sure what they were doing there.

          “That’s a cool robot,” Stingy said as he approached it.

          “Back off Miser boy,” Pixel gave him a look.

          “Hey, it’s _my_ robot!”  Sam looked at the two of them.

          “Why are you fighting over the robot?”  Trixie asked.

          “Boys,” Stephanie shook her head.  Sam grabbed the half taken apart robot and said he was leaving.  Stingy tried to take it from him which landed him a punch square in the jaw.  He tried to scream but he could not and Trixie quickly checked on him only to find his jaw broken.  She yelled and went after Sam who grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her.  She yelped and he let go but not before Sportacus bit him.  A brawl broke out and soon everyone was involved.

          From in front of his computer back at his lair, Robbie chuckled.  His plan was working perfectly.  Their memories had been wiped clean and now there was no way for them to warn anyone about the robot’s capabilities.  He turned to the screen to his right and it was running all sorts of data which in turn was being translated and printed.

          “Works like a charm,” he cackled as he pulled the papers off the printer tray.  Each one had detailed information on each person including credit card numbers, social security numbers, pin numbers, and personal secrets.

          “With this, I can drain back accounts, change my identity, and blackmail everyone in LazyTown and the best part is they can’t trace it back to me!”  He crowed.

          “I can guess from all the elevated tones out here, our little venture was a success,” Rottenella smiled.

          “Absolutely and with my bouncing IP address, they’ll never figure out it was me.  I’ve managed to blank out everyone who could possibly know about the ray and they’re fighting like cats and dogs,” the villain smirked.  Just then they heard sirens and quickly, Robbie entered the key code required to shut the program down and disguise it.  Rottenella trotted herself back to the kitchen where she had dinner cooking.  Looking out through his periscope, he saw the police car whiz past their place and continue on toward Pixel’s house.  He laughed hysterically and collapsed into his chair.  Finally he was going to outsmart Sportacus and his little merry band.


	18. Chapter 18

“Tonight LazyTown is reeling after the arrests of some of its first class citizens after a brawl broke out between the group.  Sportacus had nothing to say as he was marched into the precinct after being arrested for assaulting Sam, a former Marine, who was also charged with assault after he broke Stingy’s jaw and gave Trixie some nasty bruises.  The former has been charged with petite larceny after he attempted to steal what caused the fight in the first place.  Chuck has more on that, Chuck,” the lead reporter from LazyTown News Five, told the town.

          “That’s right Nancy.  At the center of this odd behavior is this little robot, given to Sam as a gift from none other than Robbie Rotten.  He joins me now,” Chuck turned to Robbie and asked,

          “Why did Sam have this robot?”

          “Well he’d been very kind to me as the security guard at the mall where I now rent a storefront.  I’m not really sure what happened or how they all ended up at Pixel’s but…” Robbie shrugged.

          “What does the robot do?”  Chuck inquired.

          “The robots are called Home Handy Helpers, patent pending, and they are of my own invention.  They clean up any sized mess around the house.  I have big ones, little ones, and specialty robots.  I’m opening my store in the morning, why don’t you guys drop by?  It’ll be the first page in my new book on good behavior,” the villain lied through his teeth on that last line.

          “Well maybe we will.  There you have it folks.  The good turned bad and the bad turned good.  Back to you Nancy,” Chuck finished and the Mayor shut off the television.  Stephanie had her face buried in her hands and was inches from balling.  Pixel and Amanda sat on the couch near her.

          “How did this happen?”  Milford asked, knowing the damage control on this incident would do very little good.

          “Honestly, I have no idea.  One minute I can’t remember where I am and the next Stingy is trying to steal something that doesn’t belong to him,” Pixel just shook his head.

          “Well I want everyone to go home and stay out of the limelight.  I have to go talk to the Chief and see if something can’t be done about it.  I don’t even know how the press got word before I did,” the Mayor sighed.

          “Could have been one of our neighbors, I mean it’s not every day you see Sportacus getting led away in handcuffs,” Amanda offered.

          “I suppose you’re right.  Well I’d better go,” Milford stood up and headed for the door.  Amanda turned to her best friend and tried to comfort her.

          “This has all been very weird,” Pixel shook his head.

          “I agree,” his wife nodded.

          “We’d better go over the footage,” the Gizmo Guy said.

          “Hopefully that will give us a clue as to what happened,” Amanda agreed.

          “Footage?”  Stephanie immediately perked up.

          “We have cameras in the den and a couple other rooms,” Pixel explained.  Stephanie looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

          “It’s part of the security system,” he immediately blushed when he got the drift of the eyebrow.

          “All in the public areas,” Amanda filled in so as to drive the point home.

          “Uh huh.  Well how exactly are you going to get into your home?  The cops have it sealed off as a crime scene,” the pink one pointed out.

          “Remote access.  You have a computer here right?”  Pixel asked.

          “Of course but how will these tapes help us?  I mean it will just prove that Sportacus bit Sam and that Sam broke Stingy’s jaw,” Stephanie shook her head.

          “Yes but if it was brought on by something that modified their behavior then we can use that as evidence if it ever goes to trial,” the Gizmo Guy smirked.

          “Right this way then,” the pink one smiled.


	19. Chapter 19

Sportacus sat in the holding cell looking at his surroundings.  They hadn’t changed since earlier that evening but for some reason it felt like the walls were closing in.

          “My parents would be so ashamed if they could see me now,” he muttered to himself.

          “I’m pretty sure my folks and my drill sergeant would be disappointed too,” Sam shook his head.  He sat not far away from the hero on the same hard wooden bench.

          “What happened to us?”  Sportacus asked.

          “I don’t know but I’d be willing to bet you get off Scott-free.  After all you bit me after I had broken Stingy’s jaw and bruised Trixie,” the security guard said.

          “I think we both were acting a bit crazy.  Hopefully Stephanie will still talk to me and she can get the Mayor to help us,” the above average hero sighed.

          “I thought my ears were ringing,” a familiar voice said.  The two looked up to see the pink one herself standing there.

          “I guess my dad was right.  Look before you leap, he said.  And here I find myself paying for bail,” she shook her head.

          “It’ll never happen again,” Sportacus said.

          “You promise?”  Stephanie wanted to know.

          “May Odin strike me down,” he told her.  She nodded and the guard opened the door.  Both men exited the cell and she turned to head back down the long hallway.  Sportacus put a hand on her shoulder and she turned around and said in a singsong voice,

          “You owe me,”

          “Anything you want, I promise,” he nodded.

          “You’re going to pay for that one brother,” Sam smirked.

          “Oh of that let there be no doubt.  In the meantime, Pixel and Amanda think they have something to help your case, so let’s get a move on,” the pink one pushed.  They exited the building only to be confronted by the press.

          “Sportacus!  What do you have to say for yourself?”  One reporter asked.

          “How can people trust you to save them if you’re biting people like a dog?”  Another wondered.

          “He has nothing to say to any of you.  Go find something else to do,” Stephanie said as she took his hand in hers and they walked to a nearby car which the Mayor was driving.

          “Evening, Mr. Mayor,” Sam smiled as he slid into the backseat along with Stephanie and Sportacus.

          “Evening Sam, we’re heading to my house if that’s ok,” Milford said.

          “Anywhere is better than here,” the security guard nodded.  The Mayor chuckled, put the car in drive, and headed back toward his house.  It wasn’t a long drive but almost as soon as they pulled away from the curb, Milford could feel something wrong.

          “Something isn’t right,” he called back to the people in the back seat.

          “Like what?”  Sportacus asked.  The Mayor didn’t answer as he approached the stop sign.  He hit the brakes but the car continued to roll.

          “The brakes are out!”  Milford couldn’t help but feel completely helpless as the car at the cross street started to roll through the intersection.  Sportacus used his powerful legs and slammed them through the floorboards of the old car.  The soles of his boots hit pavement and he tried to slow the car down.  Stephanie screamed as the car slammed into the other car crossing the intersection.


	20. Chapter 20

Trixie was sitting next to Stingy who was recovering from the doctors wiring his jaw shut when she heard the sound of sirens fast approaching.  It was a hospital so that wasn’t so unusual but something made her very nervous when the sirens were amplified by the sound of at least four more vehicles with sirens behind it.  Leaving Stingy, who tried to protest, she went out into the waiting room that was down the hall.

          She was about to ask what was going on when she saw all the vehicles pull up to the other set of doors further down the building which was designated for surgery and recovery.  Knowing that it wasn’t good, she turned to the nurse who was looking up from her desk.  Suddenly the phone rang and she answered it.  She wasn’t on it long before slamming the phone back down and moving to the microphone near her computer screen.

          “All available staff to ER One!  Five inbound for surgery!”  She announced and there was a flurry of movement from the other nurses on the floor and Trixie was told to get out of the way.  The trickster did as she was told but she didn’t like it one bit.  Nurses rushed around and words were thrown about.  Trixie listened and pieced together what was going on.  “Two car accident”, “Five with serious injuries”, “The Mayor of LazyTown”, that last one caught her attention.  Quickly, she once again left her movements back toward Stingy and headed back out into the waiting area.  There she whipped out her cellphone and dialed the Mayor’s house.  No one answered and she tried the office.  There the woman who filled in for Bessie answered the phone.  She quickly filled Trixie in on what she had heard and told her Bessie was inbound.  Trixie promised to intercept the receptionist before she headed into the hospital.  Thanking her, Trixie hung up and headed outside.

          Meanwhile back at the accident scene, the crime scene investigators were pouring over what the scene told them.

          “What do we have?”  Chief Dooright asked the lead investigator.

          “What we have here is a two car pileup that resulted in massive damage to both vehicles.  One of them ran the stop sign,” he said as he pointed to the Mayor’s car, “the other started to move believing the other would stop,” he finished.

          “I can see that but why would the Mayor run a stop sign, he knows is there, Max?”  Dooright wanted to know.

          “My guess is, is that he didn’t.  Something malfunctioned in the car, evidenced by the fact that Sportacus’ shoe rubber and what’s left of his boots are left on the pavement,” Max said.

          “Good God,” Dooright shook his head.

          “The man has incredible strength.  He put his feet through the floor boards of the car and tried to pull a Fred Flintstone,” Max half smiled in awe.

          “How long do you think it will take you to figure out exactly what happened?”  The Chief asked.

          “Well we have to finish up here, get everything back to the lab, and continue to process; I need a week unless I can get more people from our neighbors in FunTown,” Max told him.

          “You and Cheryl can’t work a little faster?”  The Chief wondered.

          “We’re good but not that good,” the forensic scientist smirked.

          “I’ll call up Chief Sullivan over in FunTown,” Dooright nodded and he walked away.  This was going to get worse before it got better, he just knew it.

          Over at the mall, people glued themselves to the electronics store windows.  News of the accident spread like wildfire through the small town.  Robbie watched with interest while Rottenella counted their haul for the day.

          “We sold a total of twenty robots today,” she smiled.

          “Excellent for our first day,” he said.

          “Indeed but we’re still very short of our goal,” she pointed out.

          “Don’t worry, I have a feeling sales will pick up,” he smirked and quickly ran back inside.


	21. Chapter 21

****“Ladies and gentlemen!  A onetime offer is about to head your way!  As you all know, the Mayor, his niece, Sportacus, a former Marine, and perfectly decent old lady, are in the FunTown Hospital fighting for their lives.  I’m going to keep my store open all night long if I have to in order to take donations to pay for their medical bills.  As I understand it, poor widowed Mrs. McDonnell has no insurance and Sportacus doesn’t have any either.  So please donate to this worthy cause!  If you buy a robot, a portion of the proceeds will go to their care!  Taco Fiesta from down the street has offered to join in and they will be serving their fabulous tacos starting at six pm!”  Robbie’s announcement was made over the local news broadcast and immediately people started to head to the store.

          “How are we going to make money off of this?”  Rottenella asked.

          “Simple, my dear.  A portion of the robots sold tonight will go to the medical bills and the rest to us.  I didn’t specify what portion,” Robbie smirked.

          “Excellent sir.  Stir up customer base while selling more robots.  Very keen of you,” the android smiled.

          “Exactly.  Here they come!”  Robbie smiled as people started to pour into the store.  As he had suspected the good people of LazyTown loved their Mayor and their hero.

          “Thank you all for coming!”  The former villain smiled and greeted his customers.  Outside, the Taco Fiesta truck pulled in and began to setup.  It was going to be a wonderful scheme that only he and Rottenella knew about.

          Back at the crime lab, Max tinkered underneath the Mayor’s car while Cheryl manned the computer simulation station.

          “Good God,” Max murmured.

          “What is it?”  Cheryl asked.

          “I’m pretty sure that there is flesh under here burned onto the exhaust system because it certainly smells like it,” he said.

          “Oh poor Sportacus,” his companion shook her head.

          “I don’t know how he does it but if he hadn’t done what he’d done, everyone would be dead,” Max told her as he skittered on the cart further up the body of the wrecked vehicle.

          “How do you figure?”  Cheryl wanted to know.

          “The brakes were tampered with by someone who knew what they were doing.  The brakes would have been useful enough to shift into gear and that would be about it,” he said before shoving himself out from underneath the car.

          “That would fit into my simulation, although I have yet to determine how fast they were going at the point of impact,” Cheryl explained.

          “Well we can assume that the Mayor was probably going the speed limit there which would be forty-five miles an hour.  We can also assume that Mrs. McDonnell was just leaving the stopped state, so say ten miles an hour?”  Max wondered.

          “I’d inputted those values already.  Without stopping of any kind, Mrs. McDonnell should have died on impact, judging by where the Mayor’s car intercepted hers.  However, we know that she did not, which means that Sportacus actually slowed the vehicle down,” the female forensic scientist told him.

          “Ok so somewhere in between forty-five and zero is our sweet spot,” he nodded.

          “I did the math; we’re looking more like between forty-five and twenty.  Unfortunately, anything fewer than twenty and we wouldn’t be talking about people fighting for their lives.  Under twenty and Stephanie and Sam would have been bruised but otherwise unharmed.  Mrs. McDonnell would not have had to be extricated from her vehicle but would have had broken bones.  The Mayor would have had a broken nose from the airbag but not much else and only Sportacus would be fighting to stay alive,” she explained. 

          “So somewhere in between those numbers is where you need to run the simulation.  How long will that take?”  Max wondered.

          “I started it about twenty minutes ago.  We could be looking at a few hours.  I shaved the algorithm to only include tenths of a mile per hour but that will still take some time,” Cheryl said.

          “Then let’s hope by then we’ll know more about what happened by the time it finishes.  We need to remove what’s left of the brakes and dust for prints and swab for DNA.  I’m getting the security camera footage delivered from the police station soon,” Max told her.


	22. Chapter 22

Stephanie awoke in a strange room.  She looked around, realizing it was hard to move her neck, and only then did it occur to her that she was in the hospital.  The memories of the accident came flooding back and she looked around for a friendly face.

          “Pinky!”  Trixie called out from the door of the hospital room and she quickly ran to her friend’s side, enveloping her in a gentle hug.

          “Trixie!  I’m so glad to see you.  Have you heard anything about my Uncle or Sportacus?”  Stephanie asked.

          “I haven’t.  You’re the second one out they said.  Sam is recovering quite nicely down the hall.  You two didn’t sustain too much damage,” the trickster explained.

          “What happened?”  The pink one wanted to know.

          “Well Sam had some cuts and bruises and a broken arm from slamming it into the back of your Uncle’s seat.  They had to put some screws in his arm but he’ll be fine.  You hit your head on the back of the seat you were sitting on.  Nasty case of whiplash, which is why you’re wearing a neck brace, and your ankle was broken so they have to go in and check your shin while they were at it,” Trixie said.  It was then that she realized her leg was up in the air encased in a cast.

          “The shin with all the plates and screws in it.  Fabulous.  So I guess I’m out of commission for quite some time,” Stephanie sighed.

          “Afraid so.  Chief Dooright says that the crime lab found evidence of tampering with the brakes and that they didn’t get any useable DNA or fingerprints off the car,” her friend told her.

          “Why are they investigating?  It has to have been Robbie!”  The pink one grew upset.

          “He has an airtight alibi.  Someone else did this.  Who would want to hurt your Uncle?  I mean we have to assume he was the primary target considering they had no way of knowing who he’d be driving around,” Trixie wondered.

          “This is true and if it wasn’t Robbie than the list grows infinitely larger.  No one has ever sent him death threats or even talked crossly to him at the grocery store,” Stephanie said.

          “Chief Dooright thinks it could be that radical church group.  After Sportacus was arrested they were calling for him to be removed from his position and kicked out of town,” her friend explained.

          “This is the same group who complained he was a bad influence because of the way he dressed?”  The pink one asked.

          “Yes.  I never remember their name,” Trixie shook her head.

          “God’s Fish.  I never understood that name anyway.  Well I guess one of them is crazy enough to try it but even that seems too farfetched for them,” Stephanie said slowly shaking her head.   Just then Bessie walked into the room and collapsed on the chair nearest the door.

          “Bessie!”  Stephanie was relieved to see the secretary.  However, all she got was Bessie beginning to ball.  Tears ran down her face and immediately Trixie rushed to her side in an attempt to calm her.

          “Not my Uncle.  No, I can’t be…” Stephanie was straining to keep herself together when a doctor walked into the room.

          “What has happened?”  The pink one wanted to know.

          “Mrs. McDonnell passed away while in surgery,” he told her.

          “My Uncle?”  She swallowed.

          “He’s still in surgery.  Sportacus…” he trailed off not sure how to put what he had to say.

          “Sportacus what?!”  Stephanie demanded.

          “His legs had to be amputated below the knees.  What remained of his legs was too far damaged to be repaired,” he told her.  It was then that Stephanie heaved a sigh and began to cry.


	23. Chapter 23

“Doctor!  Is it true that Sportacus had to have his legs amputated?”

          “What is the condition of the Mayor?”

          “What about the Widow McDonnell?”  Questions from reporters flew at the press conference, which was just in time for the eleven o’clock news that Doctor Budmark was holding.  He held up his arms and the room grew silent.

          “I have a simple statement to give after which Chief Dooright from the LazyTown Police Department will be explaining things in detail,” the doctor explained.  When he was not interrupted, he continued,

          “I am sorry to say that Mrs. McDonnell passed away as a result of her injuries suffered from the accident.  The Mayor is in serious condition at this time along with Sportacus.  Stephanie and Sam are recovering and will be ok.”  At that moment he turned his head to Chief Dooright who took over the press conference.

          “First let me say that my heart goes out to Mrs. McDonnell’s family.  I am truly sorry for your loss.  She was a wonderful lady and she will be missed,” he paused, making sure he had everything he wanted to say laid out before him,

          “With her passing, the charges now include murder.  The Mayor and his passengers have been excluded as suspects due to the fact that the brakes on the Mayor’s car had been tampered with.  That being said, the FunTown Police Department has offered their assistance in the matter.  If anyone knows anything about the case, they are urged to call five-five-five-seven-four-six-five.  That number is five-five-five-seven-four-six-five.  A reward will be given to those that lead us to the killer.”  With that he stood and the conference ended.  Reporters threw questions at the men but got no response.  Local news broadcasts carried their message all over the town and soon Robbie heard it.

          “Great Cake Batter!”  He exclaimed.

          “What’s going on?”  Rottenella asked.

          “They say that Sportakook lost his legs in the accident,” he told her.  The android looked at him incredulously.

          “How do you know that to be true?”  She wanted to know.

          “Good point.  LazyTown reporters can’t even give a good story when it’s right in front of them.  Perhaps I had best drop by the old boy’s hospital room,” Robbie rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

          “After all, a good remote controlled pair of legs should work just as well as a pair of boots,” Rottenella smirked.

          “Did I ever tell you how bad you are?”  He asked.

          “You did make me this way,” she laughed.

          “True, I did and a damn fine job, if I say so myself,” Robbie chuckled and quickly threw on his coat before dashing out of his lair.

          Stephanie sat in a wheelchair she’d been given next to Sportacus’ bed.  He hadn’t fully regained consciousness just yet as the pain medication they’d given him had kept him out of it.  She kept throwing words around in her head trying to figure out what to say to him when he awoke but nothing sounded good at all.  A nurse silently entered the room and smiled at her.

          “You really should go to bed,” the male nurse said.

          “I don’t sleep until he wakes up.  I have to be here for him when he finds out…” Stephanie chocked back a sob.  The nurse nodded and checked the machines that the above average hero was hooked up to.  Then he suddenly swirled on Stephanie and plunged a needle into her arm, she tried to scream but he covered her mouth.  As whatever was in the syringe took effect, she saw the man reach for Sportacus’ IV drip.  He squeezed it shut and waited for the fluid to build up.  She lost consciousness just as the sound of the heart monitor cried that Sportacus’ heart had stopped.


	24. Chapter 24

Nurses rushed into the room and Robbie could hear shouting.  Curiosity won out and he raced into the throng to see the nurses fighting with a man, trying to get to Sportacus, whose heart had appeared to stop.  Upon seeing Robbie, the man froze and he took that opportunity to punch the fake nurse in the face.  Pulling his hand back and wincing, Robbie expected the man to fight back but he did not, since he was on the floor.  The nurses then pushed Robbie out and shoved the unconscious man out with him. 

          “Call security and the police.  This guy tried to kill Sportacus,” Robbie ordered the one nurse who had to stay behind and man the desk.  He then took the other phone from the desk and tied up the man with the cord.

          It wasn’t long until two security guards came.  Surprised at who they saw, they weren’t sure who they should be arresting.  The nurse pointed to the tied up man on the floor and they got to work.  Robbie then headed to the room where they were working on Sportacus and Stephanie.  The monitors were still screaming and the nurses were trying to restart the hero’s heart.

          “Clear!”  A nurse shouted out and the paddles went onto his chest after manual compressions failed.  Nothing sounded on the monitor and they charged it up again.

          “Clear!”  The flat line continued and the charge went higher with the next attempt.  Everything seemed to slow and the staff held their breath as finally the above average hero’s heart responded.

          “Get him stabilized and have that syringe analyzed.  We need to know what went into Stephanie,” the head nurse ordered.  Quickly the other nurses got to work.  The head nurse now came out of the room and looked at Robbie.

          “Mister Rotten, what are you doing here?  Visiting hours are long since over,” she gave him a look.

          “Nurse Rogers, I’m here because what I heard on the news disturbed me.  Is it true that Sportacus lost his legs?”  He asked.

          “I can’t tell you, you know that,” she said.

          “After what you had to do to save him and the guy security guards have in custody you’re going to play that card?”  Robbie wanted to know.

          “With a convicted felon?  You bet,” Rogers told him.

          “I’m here to help.  I have the expertise to make him robotic legs.  He could still be a hero,” the purple wearing man said.  The look on her face told him more than what she told him next,

          “The answer is still no.  Now please go assist the officers that have arrived.”  With that she turned her attention back to Stephanie who was being wheeled back down to her room.

          “How much longer until we know what was in that syringe?”  Rogers asked.

          “About ten minutes.  The lab is processing as fast as they can.  Her vitals are stable so I imagine what she got was a sedative,” the nurse who was pushing Stephanie down the hall.

          “I hope to God that’s all he gave her.  Keep me posted.  I’m going to have security sit with Sportacus,” The head nurse nodded before heading back to the desk.

          “Let me get this straight.  This guy tried to kill Sportacus and Robbie Rotten stopped him.  You must think I was born yesterday,” Officer Thigpen shook his head.

          “That’s the God’s honest truth,” Security Guard Marlow told him.

          “All right then.  If I even get a whiff that you’ve violated parole you’re going back in the Klink,” Thigpen pointed his finger at Robbie before he and his partner hauled the mysterious man away.


	25. Chapter 25

****Stephanie awoke to find Bessie, Trixie, and Robbie asleep in chairs around her bed.  She did a double take upon seeing the criminal.

          “What the…?” she started.

          “Pinky!”  Trixie was up in a flash.  Apparently the girl was only lightly napping.

          “What is he doing here?”  Stephanie wanted to know.

          “What’s going on?”  Bessie slowly came to.

          “I was asking the same thing,” the pink one said.

          “Why is someone trying to interrupt my sleep?”  Robbie mumbled.

          “What are you doing here?  What happened to Sportacus?”  Stephanie demanded.

          “Whoa whoa let me explain,” the purple wearing villain then went onto explain what he walked into the night before.

          “How is he?  What about my Uncle?”  She asked.

          “Your Uncle is out of the ICU but they are watching him very closely.  Sportacus is safe, they have security watching over him,” Bessie explained.

          “I need to see them,” Stephanie said.

          “Not sure that’s such a good idea.  Doctor said that until the police clear up who this guy was and what he was doing, that everyone in the accident is to remain in their room with rotating security in case he isn’t the only whack-job,” Trixie told her.

          “But…” she tried to interject.

          “Listen to them.  It’s for your own good,” Robbie stood and put a hand on her shoulder.  She gave him a look like she couldn’t believe him.

          “Don’t worry about this Pinky.  I’ve got it under control,” he said.

          “Somehow that doesn’t comfort me,” she told him.

          “Can we get the room for a couple of minutes?” Robbie asked the two other women.  Bessie and Trixie gave him a look like he was crazy but Stephanie said,

          “It’s ok.” 

          “We’ll be right outside,” Trixie promised as they exited the room.  Robbie leaned down and whispered,

          “It’s true isn’t it?” 

“What are you talking about?”  Stephanie asked.

“He lost his legs didn’t he?”  The purple wearing villain wanted to know.  The pink one tried to lead him astray with a brave front but it failed as tears slipped down her cheeks.  Robbie nodded and said,

“You focus on him and I’ll get him some new legs.”

“How can I trust you after all we’ve been through?”  She looked at him unsure of his offer.

“You can’t but what villain would I be without Sportacus?”  He smirked and patted her shoulder before he took off leaving her to think and Trixie and Bessie to talk to her.

Meanwhile at the police station, Chief Dooright stood across from the seated suspect in the interrogation room.

“Why did you try to kill Sportacus?  Did you tamper with the brakes on the Mayor’s car?  You’re looking at one count murder, two counts attempted murder, and three counts of assault.  Talk to me now and maybe, just maybe, you don’t get the needle,” the Chief said.

“God told me to do it.  He is a blasphemer,” the man told him.

“Get him out of my sight,” Dooright shook his head and the officers removed the man to the holding cells.


	26. Chapter 26

Sportacus awoke to find the Chief standing nearby talking to a nurse.  He looked around for Stephanie but did not see her and that immediately concerned him.

          “Good to see you awake,” Dooright smiled as he and the nurse approached the bed.

          “Good to be awake, I guess.  I have some pain in my legs though,” the above average hero said.

          “I’m Nurse Rogers.  What you are experiencing is pretty normal.  I like to discuss your condition if you don’t mind,” she smiled slightly.

          “I don’t mind but where is Stephanie?  What about the Mayor and Sam?  What about the person we hit?”  Sportacus had lots of questions.

          “I’ll let the Chief fill you in on all of that.  The first thing we need to discuss is your medical condition,” Rogers told him.  Her tone told the hero that it probably wasn’t good news and he swallowed hard.

          “As a result of the accident, you suffered massive trauma to your legs from the knee down.  The doctors did everything they could but they were not able to save them.  That pain you feel is what they call “Phantom pain”.  The limb isn’t there but your body doesn’t realize it, much like your brain is having a hard time processing what I’m saying to you,” the nurse could see the glazed look in his eyes.  It didn’t quite hit until Sportacus pulled back the covers on the bed and saw them for himself.

          “There have been great advances in the world of prostheses.  The prosthetics department here is fully prepared to outfit you and start therapy as soon as you’re ready.  I know this is a lot to process so I want you to call me anytime day or night.  You want to talk about anything and everything,” Nurse Rogers handed him a card that had her home phone and cell phone on it.

          “I appreciate that Nurse Rogers.  Does Stephanie know?”  Sportacus asked.

          “She does.  She wanted to be the one to tell you but she’s in no condition to do so mentally,” the woman explained.  Then they heard a shout from the hallway,

          “Hey you can’t go in there!”  That’s when Sportacus saw the pink hair and knew that Stephanie wasn’t about to listen.  Despite being in a wheelchair, she busted through the door.  Heavy footfalls could be heard only moments behind her.

          “Sportacus!”  She saw him awake and tried to wheel to him before the hands of the security guard who had been giving her a push, latched onto the handles of the chair.

          “Let me go!”  The pink one screamed.

          “Do as she says son,” Chief Dooright told him.  The young man quickly did so and the young woman wheeled herself to the other side of the bed, across from Nurse Rogers.

          “You were supposed to be keeping her in her room,” the nurse said.

          “She was restless.  I thought a walk would help,” he defended himself.

          “Don’t get upset with him.  Nothing could keep Stephanie from Sportacus.  You’re just lucky she didn’t crawl here,” Dooright put a hand on the nurse’s shoulder and gave the pink one a wink.

          “All right.  I’ll leave you to it then,” the nurse nodded before leaving the room, the security guard in tow.

          “I wanted to be here when you woke up,” Stephanie said.

          “You should listen to the nurses and doctors.  You need to get better too,” Sportacus said.

          “And not be with you, no way,” she was fierce in her determination and it made the hero smile.

          “Despite…” he trailed off.

          “No matter what, you’re stuck with me,” she told him.  She reached out and grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze.

          “I’ll leave you two alone but not before I tell you what has happened,” the Chief said.  He quickly brought them both up to speed.

          “The suspect is being arraigned tomorrow at the court house.  We expect a big crowd and the guy is in protective custody.  As far as what made you all go bonkers, I don’t have any ideas.  Pixel and Amanda have been trying to help discover what happened but they’ve come up empty handed.  Needless to say the Mayor wants the charges dropped and for this to all go away,” Dooright finished up.

          “My Uncle?  You spoke to him?”  Stephanie asked.

          “No.  In a time of crisis the Deputy Mayor runs the city.  Your Uncle is still being kept apart from everyone until he comes around.  The doctors are impressed with his progress but he’s still in a medically induced coma,” the Chief said.

          “Oh,” was all Stephanie could manage.

          “What does the man have to say for himself?”  Sportacus wanted to know.

          “He says that you’re an abomination and that you will pay for your bad influence.  The guy is being analyzed by the county psychiatrist.  Surprisingly the group he claims to belong to, God’s Fish, says he isn’t a member and they denounce what he’s done.  They even offered to pay some of your medical costs,” Dooright smirked.

          “So your garden variety crazy huh?  Any chance he was in league with Robbie?”  Stephanie asked.

          “This guy is so crazy that Robbie was on his hit list too.  Found his “manifesto” when we raided his apartment,” the Chief shook his head.

          “Right.  Ok well then I guess we deal with what we got.  Thank you so much,” Sportacus nodded.

          “Welcome.  Now you two get reacquainted,” he smiled and left the two to talk.


	27. Chapter 27

Robbie sat at his desk, drumming his fingers on its top.  He’d been staring at his computer screen for hours, looking at plans, and now in the wee hours of the morning, he was beginning to question everything.  Could he really do as he said?  Was it worth it to put Sportacus through all that after what he’d already been through?  How could he be having these thoughts in the first place? 

          _Because the Pink One would kill you if you did anything to her Sportakook,_ his mind told him.

_Hasn’t stopped me before,_ he argued.

          _That look on her face should be enough to tell you what you need to do,_ his brain argued.  Robbie cursed his bad luck.  His brain was right.  As much as he loved being bad, it broke his heart to see Stephanie so upset.  He didn’t have a good reason for it other than his mind telling him that the right thing to do was stop.  Stop the evil he was doing, not stop helping Sportacus.  Then he realized that without the hero, it would be no fun to do anything bad anyway.  The cops never had the stones to go after him without Sportacus and to be honest after he’d seen the whack-job who had caused the incident in the first place, it seemed as though they had bigger fish to fry.

          “You’re crazy Rotten you know that?”  He said to himself as he pulled up the plans on normal prosthetic legs and got to work.

          Hours later, at the usual wake up time of eleven am, Rottenella came down the chute into the main room of the Lair and looked around.  First thing she noticed was that it was completely spotless.  All the cobwebs were gone.  All the cakes crumbs had been swept, and shock of all shocks, the garbage had been taken out.  The next thing she noticed was that there was a note attached to the computer screen.  Fetching it, she read it.

          _I’m off to the hospital to give Sportacus his new legs.  We have to talk when I get back._   It was signed Robbie.  She had been so excited to come home and see him while the store was closed for her break that she didn’t know what to do with herself. 

          “Lousy emotion chip,” she cursed under her breath and immediately scanned the area looking around for anything that would give her a clue as to what he meant.  However in the spotless area, nothing was where it used to be and finding real anomalies was very difficult.  She quickly left the Lair certain that he was just up to his usual tricks and that they’d discuss it later.

          Meanwhile at the hospital, Robbie was allowed to see the above average hero and he gave the normally blue-suited man a small smile.

          “I have something for you,” he said.

          “So I hear it was you who saved me,” Sportacus tried to ignore the large bag the villain was carrying.

          “The nurses and doctors saved you.  All I did was sit on the guy who tried to kill you,” Robbie said.

          “It was very brave of you, especially since…” the hero trailed off.

          “So where is Pinky?”  The villain changed the subject.

          “She’s off getting a sponge bath and some lunch.  It’s the only time of the day she will leave me alone,” he chuckled.

          “I bet you wish you were the one giving the bath,” Robbie smirked and an awkward silence fell between the two for a few moments.

          “Anyway, here.  For you,” the villain handed the large bag to the hero and Sportacus looked inside unsure of what he’d find.  To his shock, he found a pair of prosthetics.

          “Robbie, I…”

          “No need to get all mushy on me.  These are state of the art, made especially for you, and your unique abilities.  Now it might be hard to get them situated right but I figure I’d help the prosthetics department fit them to you and then see if they need improvements,” the purple wearing man smiled.

          “How’d you do this so fast?  These aren’t like those pair of boots you gave me right?”  Sportacus looked at him.

          “Well I had an extra pair of robotic legs from some older models of robots from my ‘everything should be robotic’ phase.  As far as the legs, these are just plain old mechanical legs unless you want me to make them remote controllable,” Robbie teased.

          “I don’t know what to say,” the hero confessed.

          “Just promise me you’ll be up on them as soon as possible.  Hard to perpetrate villainy with no one to chase you,” Robbie smirked.

          “A truce then?”  Sportacus asked.

          “A change in lifestyle maybe; I haven’t figured that part out yet.  All I know is I couldn’t get the look on Stephanie’s face out of my head when I asked her the truth,” he shrugged.

          “Shall we go try these out then?”  The hero wanted to know.  Robbie grabbed a nearby wheelchair and helped the hero into it.


	28. Chapter 28

Stephanie returned to Sportacus’ room to find it empty and she began to worry.  Wheeling out into the hallway she looked around and saw a nurse who was waving to her.

          “Where is Sportacus?”  She asked when the nurse got to her.

          “He had an appointment with the prosthetics department.  I can take you down there,” she smiled.

          “Yes please,” Stephanie smiled.  Quickly the nurse took her wheelchair handles and pushed her toward the elevator.

          “I have to admit that I didn’t think he’d be up so quickly.  I mean he is Sportacus but the look on his face… I just…” the pink one trailed off.

          “Everyone has to go through that phase of disbelief.  Some deal with it very well and others don’t.   Sportacus seems like the kind of guy who would take it in stride once he got used to the idea.  Besides, he has you to kick him in the ass,” the nurse smirked.  Stephanie laughed as the elevator dinged and they got off.  As they entered the exercise room of the prosthetics department, she saw Sportacus standing in a new pair of legs in between two handrails with Robbie standing there next to him.  Sam was there too, encouraging him to take a step.

          “Not sure I’m ready for this,” Sportacus seemed shaky.  It was something no one had ever seen and it worried Stephanie.

          “Yes you are.  We’re dancing at our wedding,” the pink one spoke up.  All eyes turned to her and for a second Robbie thought Sportacus was going to flip out.

          “That’s right, we are,” he smiled his famous smile and put a mechanical foot out and then down.  He breathed in sharply as the weight on the stump of his leg below the knee screamed out in pain.

          “That first one is a doozy but it should go away over time,” Sam reassured him.

          “I can increase the padding on the cup for the leg.  That would probably help.  Took apart an old pillow and stuffed the neoprene with it,” Robbie told them.

          “Better stuffing would be great,” Sportacus winced as he moved the other leg down and practically fell.  Robbie grabbed his one side and Sam the other and they steadied him back upright.

          “Wow,” the above average hero breathed.

          “I want you to try and push it.  I’ve developed these so that they emulate a normal gait.  It’d be nice to see if they need work,” Robbie said.

          “I’m not sure…” the hero trailed off as he looked down to the end of the handrails and saw Stephanie standing there.  She leaned heavily on her uninjured leg but she was upright and it was the incentive he needed.  He lifted up his leg and pressed it down.  Then the next one moved ahead.  Slowly but surely he made his way down the wooden floor with handrails.

          “Can you tell if it’s working?”  Sam asked Robbie.

          “He’s still too worried about putting his foot down.  Maybe after a few more weeks of getting used to them and he’ll be more ready to try to walk like a normal human being,” the former villain shook his head.

          “You wouldn’t happen to have any more of those lying around would you?”  The veteran asked.

          “Buddy, I have enough robotic pieces parts to last a lifetime.  What size are you?”  Robbie wanted to know.

          “I used to wear a size eleven shoe if that helps,” Sam said.

          “Let me get a measurement of your leg.  We’ll go from there,” the villain told him.

          “You got it,” Sam smiled.

          “We haven’t been paying attention,” Robbie pointed out as Sportacus was now at the end of the line and hugging Stephanie.

          “I’d say he’s got the use of those bad boys down,” Sam laughed.


	29. Chapter 29

That night when Robbie got home, he found Rottenella waiting for him.  She’d baked him a large cake and put extra frosting on it, which now sat on the kitchen table.  He was salivating just from the smell as he sat down and that’s when she asked,

          “What have you been up to all day?”

          “I’ve been helping Sportacus work his new legs.  He’s a bit shaky but I think with some refinements we can get to the real gait issues soon,” he smiled at her.

          “Helping Sportacus?  Did I just hear that correctly?  My auditory functions must not be working right,” Rottenella shook her head.

          “You heard right.  I was helping him.  Sam is coming over tomorrow and I’m going to see if I can help him into a new set of legs,” Robbie stated simply.

          “Robert Rotten, have you forgotten your namesake?”  She asked.

          “No, it wouldn’t be much fun to be a villain without Sportacus but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that going to jail isn’t fun either.  You should have seen the looks on their faces when Sportacus walked.  It was like I’d just invented the greatest thing since sliced bread.  I think this is where I’ve turned the corner, which is why I’m shutting the robot’s extra function down.  No one will ever know what happened and they will still get a perfectly good robot for their home,” the purple wearing man was smiling as he thought about it.

          “Are you running a fever?”  Rottenella was extremely confused, as her logic processor tried to figure out what he meant.

          “No I…” the sound of the doorbell interrupted him and he left the table and headed for the door.  Rottenella followed him, more confusion settled in as she saw him actually answering the door.  He pushed the intercom button and said,

          “Hello?”

          “Robbie, its Pixel and Amanda.  We need to talk,” the Gizmo Guy said.

          “Come on down,” he smiled.

          “That was weird,” Amanda commented.

          “Incredibly,” Pixel said as he hit the button and the lid of the tube opened.  He jumped inside and she followed him.  When she got down to the bottom, there was a very soft pillow and all sorts of cushions which were a nice surprise but it also made her concerned.

          “Hope that was soft enough.  Don’t want little Pixel Jr. getting brain damage,” Robbie smiled.

          “Are you ok?”  Amanda asked.

          “Never been better,” he smiled.

          “I think your android is smoking,” Pixel spoke up as Robbie turned to see Rottenella’s ears had smoke coming out of them.

          “Her processor has been malfunctioning,” Robbie shook his head, went over, and said,

          “Rottenella, start reboot process five, five, three, six.  Authorization code alpha, beta, zulu.”  Her eyes went dark and she shut down.

          “So what’s up?” he asked.

          “We found the little scanner you had in that robot,” Pixel said.

          “You did?  Well I figured you would, only a matter of time but I want you to be present when I do this,” Robbie went over to the control panel and pressed a series of keys.

          “Robot Scanner Shut Down has been initiated.  Give code for finalization,” the computer spoke.

          “Shut Down Code Gamma Phi Theta,” he said.  With that, the systems shut down. 

          “System Erase Code required,” the computer said.

          “System Erase Code zero, zero, one, seven,” Robbie told it.

          “Code confirmed.  Have a Rotten Day,” the computer responded and with that it went black.

          “Ok, who are you and what have you done with Robbie?”  Amanda asked.


	30. Chapter 30

A couple of months passed and life in LazyTown was slowly getting back to normal.  Stephanie had been released from the hospital a few days after Sportacus had walked with his new legs.  The two of them had been going to therapy appointments together and as she finished hers, she would come for support when he went to his.

          Sportacus wasn’t up to crime-fighting speed yet but with the therapy and Sam’s help, he was making great strides in the process.  Robbie continually fine-tuned the legs he’d given the hero and he kept his cleaning robot store open.  No one with the exception of Pixel and Amanda knew about the little scanner.

          Pixel and Amanda still had a few months before their baby was born but their excitement never dwindled and more often than not everyone knew to find them at the baby store buying adorable little toys and clothing for the baby.  Stephanie warned them they wouldn’t be getting a baby shower but the two promised they were ok with it.  The renovations to their home kept them busy as well, especially when Pixel surprised Amanda with an adorable therapy dog, a Labrador by the name of Ransom.

          Trixie and Stingy were all healed from their experience with the robot and the miser had proposed to her, as she suspected at his parent’s house.  Needless to say, his folks were dumbfounded as they had had no warning.  However, they were glad that they would soon be adding a daughter to their family.

          Sam received his pair of legs from Robbie and was an old pro at them in no time.  He quit the job at the mall as the security guard and put in to take the civil servants test.  Passing it with flying colors, he earned himself a spot on the LazyTown Police force.  Chief Dooright was more than happy to have him there.  He couldn’t go out in the field but he was given the position of training officers for house to house combat.  Granted things like that didn’t happen very often in LazyTown but it was better to be prepared than unaware.  The former instructor was glad to retire and the two became good friends.  The men on the job respected Sam and his experience and for the first time in a long time he was happy with his life.

          The Mayor was now fully recovered but order by his doctor’s to reduce the stress in his life.  He gave up being Mayor and promised that as soon as he was feeling better, he’d marry Bessie.  The busybody began making plans and Stephanie was starting to get the impression that she’d never get any sleep as the woman was constantly bringing her ideas, even the ones she got in the middle of the night.

Ziggy, who had been covering for Sportacus, now entered Milford’s house looking for the hero.

“You said you wanted to talk?”  The candy-loving adult asked, finding the hero in the kitchen, helping Stephanie with the dinner dishes.

“Sorry Ziggy, lost track of time,” he smiled.

“It’s all right,” he smiled back.

“Steph, I’m heading out with Ziggy.  Be back soon,” Sportacus leaned down and kissed her forehead.

“I can finish up here,” she told him, her soapy hands in the sink water.  The hero nodded and headed outside with Ziggy.  They walked to the airship where Sportacus had him sit down on the bench that was nearby.

“Ziggy, you’ve been doing an admirable job these past few months and I really appreciate it.  It looks like I’ll still be out of commission for a while so there is something I want you to have,” the above average hero reached into his pocket and pulled out a key.

“She’s all yours,” he said, handing him the key.

“You mean…” Ziggy trailed off and looked up.

“Yes I do.  The computer can show you how to fly her and I’ve adjusted the voice commands so that they don’t have to match my voice patterns.  Take real good care of her, ok?” the hero smiled.

“Yes, sir!”  Ziggy was as excited as a kid in a candy shop.

“All right.  Any questions come to me and I’ll do the best I can.  You keep it up and maybe one of these days you will become the first person outside of my family to wear a number on your chest,” Sportacus smiled and Ziggy practically passed out. 

“I’ll do my best,” the young man promised.

“I know you will, now give her a go,” the hero said.  Quickly Ziggy called for the ladder and it swung down.  He climbed it as fast as he could and Sportacus smiled.

Meanwhile in Robbie’s Lair, Rottenella stood in a closet.  Her systems shut down when she tried to beat Robbie up for behaving himself.  Robbie had promised to fix her but he’d been putting it off.  He crawled into his favorite chair and turned on the television.  He couldn’t help the feeling that he was being watched despite the fact he knew he couldn’t be.  Shrugging it off, he went back to watching his program.  In the closet, Rottenella’s eyes lit up.  She would get her revenge even if it killed Robbie.

**The End**


End file.
